Slow Like Honey
by plurabelle
Summary: David Cook Fic: A night lurking on a message board, leads to more than he anticipated. Mature Content to come.


Chapter 1

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were in love." Michael teased.

David could feel the heat rising to his face, but did his best to look pissed off.

"We are not having this conversation again, Mike. I told you, it helps me…unwind."

Sighing, and turning serious for a change, Michael continues, "Dave…no one has been able to get you away from that damn computer for weeks. The only time any of us even see you anymore, is right before or right after a show. This is getting…a little out of control."  
"Damnit, Mike..."

"Have you ever stopped to think that maybe this might be becoming more than a little…unhealthy? Pretending to be someone else? Lying to all those people?"

David opens his mouth to protest, but all he can do is sigh deeply. Running his hand through his hair, he leans his head back on the couch, closing his eyes.

"I'm not…pretending or lying. I mean, I just haven't told them who I really am. But I'm still…me." He presses his hands into his eyes, and mutters "Oh fuck, I don't even know what I'm saying anymore."

Michael waits for David to continue.

"There's a…complication." David whispers.

"Ok." Michael says, joining him on the couch. "Who is she?"

He had always been too curious for his own good. It had gotten him into trouble more times than he could count. So, it was only a matter of time before he ended up on the message boards.

It started out as a joke. His friend Andy had called him one night to tell him about this board where all these women had supposedly been posting all these…fantasies about him. Never one to turn down the chance to have a nice long stroke to his ego, David was more than a little curious and wanted to check it out. The next night, Andy came over and the two of them went exploring.

That was how it started. So innocently.

He had gone to the thread, and he couldn't believe what he was reading. Where were all these women when he was a bartender in Tulsa? Playing to 5 people at 3am for free? He couldn't deny that it intrigued him. And fucking hell, it definitely turned him on to no end, to picture all those women wanting to do everything under the sun with him. So, he found himself going back for more. It was hard not to. Every night, he found himself alone in his hotel room, logging on to the site, in need of a fix.

After a few days of lurking, he started to wander around to other threads, and came across one called "Confessions". This topic had nothing at all to do with sexual fantasies, but was instead a sort of support group for people going through a tough time. He was immediately drawn to a post by someone named LeftOfCenter. He had seen some of her posts in the fantasy thread, and just seeing her handle on the screen was enough to make his jeans feel a bit more snug. Some of the things she said she imagined when she was alone in bed…

But…this was a completely different kind of post. And as he read it, he began to feel like such a sleaze for immediately letting his mind wander into the gutter.

She opened up about a very dark period of her life. The loss of her mother, the break-up with a fiancé' who had suddenly become abusive, her and her best friend of 10 years drifting apart. All of it coming at around the same time. She wrote of shutting herself off from the world. Emotionally distancing herself from everyone around her. Because she just couldn't handle being hurt again.

David felt like an intruder reading this. He felt like he should have stopped and left the topic and forgotten about it. But he couldn't. He was drawn in by her words, and by a sudden, overwhelming desire to comfort her.

She wrote about watching American Idol, and how hearing him sing "Hello" was like a trigger for her. Like flipping a switch. Allowing her to FEEL again for the first time, in months.

"Discovering David, and his music…brought me out of that place. That place I thought I would be in forever. And for that…not to mention every other thing he has brought to my life…I will always be grateful to him."

Reading her words, David felt his emotions swirling. He had always been a 'crier'. And didn't have any problem with wearing his heart on his sleeve. But, he just couldn't even express how deeply moved he was by what this woman had written.

He…had to find a way to reach out to her. To contact her.

He thought long and hard about it, and finally decided he would just create an account, and send her a short private message. He obviously couldn't say who he was…she would never believe him anyway, so he made up his mind to just 'create' a persona. Just so he could let her know…somehow…that what she had written had moved him. Had affected him more then he could even put into words.

He thought long and hard about picking a handle. And ended up using the first thing that came to mind. Cheesy, but it would work. He clicked on her name, and chose the option "Send Message"

Dear LeftOfCenter,

Hi, I know you're probably wondering why the hell you're getting a message from someone you don't know. But, I'm new here, and was looking around at some of the threads and ran across your post last night in "Confessions".

I have to say, you express yourself beautifully. I felt the heartbreak, and loneliness you spoke of coming through your words, and I just…had to write and thank you for sharing that part of yourself. I know it must have been hard talking about it. I guess that's the beauty of a place like this. Being able to lay your soul bare, without fear of judgment. Believe me, I could use that every once in a while, myself.

Anyhow, I know this isn't very cohesive and is more than a little rambling…but I wanted to write this before I lost my nerve.

Take care of yourself,

GuitarHero

Before he could change his mind, he hit "send".


End file.
